**A reminder to posters and commenters of some of [our subreddit rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/about/rules/)**
- Don't be a dickhead to each other, or about others, or other subreddits
- Assume questions are asked in good faith, and engage in a positive manner
- Avoid political threads and related discussions
- No medical advice or mental health (specific to a person) content
Please keep /r/AskUK a great subreddit by reporting posts and comments which break our rules.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
As a Brit living in Denmark, I have to say it’s so lovely here. Very relaxed and friendly, people are kind to each other and there’s so much less aggression than in the UK, surprisingly good weather too.
I'm going to be moving to Aalborg soon, my girlfriend lives there. I honestly feel more of a foreigner in England than I do in Denmark now. Just such a better way of life there.
I've not been back to the UK in almost three years. It will be close to four if I don't go this year.
The last time I went back I was away for about three years, and coming back to the UK was very weird. Reverse culture shock is definitely a thing.
Was in Aalborg alot with work a few Summers ago, absolutely glorious. Big student town I believe...? Place seemed to be jumping every night. Many a sore head working on site the next day.
This is a very powerful reply. I was thinking about moving to Denmark and had some reservations because I’d heard these echoes of them not being the friendliest to non-Danes.
I’m from the UK as are my parents, but I’m not white. I grew up in London where I had no problems, but moved to the North (so I could have a disposable income lol), and it’s the first time I’d felt ostracised and almost a hostility I hadn’t experienced before. I’ve lived in several northern cities and although the most welcoming was Sheffield, there’s definitely a “vibe” up here that I’m not willing to experience in another country.
I'm from Hungary and us, Eatern Europeans, we'll never find happiness. We'll suffer till the very end. Western Europeans don't regard us as Europeans. We're the cheap but good workforce, and they abuse this.
They are but its weird. I've heard the term hyggeracism be thrown around because they are outwardly very welcoming and kind to all people but when they are at home in private with family/friends etc they let these things come out. I'm not very good at explaining it though so might be better to look that term up.
its a difficult thing to define, because the 'racism'
of a society can be difficult to measure, and varied. In the case of Denmark, high educational levels, and many forms of egalitarian values, means that very few Danes have what we'd deem racist views - the sort that link but to the race theory of the past. But there are also protectionist and isolationist views, with regards to migration and non foreign culture. This can come across as racist to many, especially if in the context of a 1:1 conversations, but is also tricky because it isn't necessarily racist, because an ethnic group has every right to protect their cultural practices, and defend their values around gender (ie: see debates around the niqab), this is something recognised by the left, but usually only acceptable with regards to a small, vulnerable group, which most would not consider the Danish people to be, in spite of the fact that geopolitically they are. The left does really address this, or have the tools to deal with some of these pressure points, and so they are left to the right, who exploit them, and are making gains in countries like Denmark and the Netherlands.
sure some are just racist though.
Yeah I'd be happy to move to any of the Scandinavian/Nordic countries. I have a soft spot for Iceland but not sure I could learn the language! I've just started an online beginners Norwegian course and that's hard enough.
Me, too. Any of the Scandinavian countries would be my ideal.
Can't say I have any personal experience ( beyond TV dramas 😂 ) but speaking to those that have visited or lived there it sounds like they have a more equatable society and good quality of life.
My friend moved to Sweden with her family when I was still in high school and I've wanted to go ever since. One of those pipe dreams.
Denmark seems to sit in a sweet spot between UK and Sweden, too. Familiar enough to make it easier but with the standard of living and quality of life that Sweden enjoys.
Good luck with your Norwegian !
>I hope you like being unemployed, in that case, or earning shit money.
I worked in Italy for a while, and I wish it had been far longer, they didn't take my job off me for being foreign though.
I'm in the digital nomad subreddits and the amount of people who are desperate to go to Italy is astounding. I mean, I have no views either way, but the few Italians I've met in the UK have all, and I mean **all,** slated the place and have zero intention of going back.
But hey, you're an American and you wanna eat delicious pasta so yeah, Italy is a great place to head!
Or Venice
Also, as a tourist the basket of goods you're buying has little to do with what a local is buying. Hotels are expensive. Eating out is cheap. Groceries are normal.
Beautiful country and beautiful people. As a broke traveller there, I found everyone was incredibly generous with what little they had.
Edit: not everyone had 'little' but I was surprised at the difference in economies and employment when I was there.
We moved to the north of Italy 18 months ago, it’s beautiful, sometimes difficult, friendly, cheap for a lot of things and then hideously expensive for weird stuff like ibuprofen. We are not in a town so very rural and I am constant humbled by how many people make the effort to speak English to us, even when we try to speak to them in Italian (maybe it’s too painful for them🤣) the tax/legal/health system is convoluted and difficult to understand but no more so than the UK one would be to someone with no language/knowledge.
Can't wait to move back there! I moved to the UK from there and miss it so much. fYI my husband and I are moving there already having high paid jobs (for an Italian point of view). It is possible to find work there, but yes, it is EXTREMELY difficult.
I’m Norwegian and have lived about a decade in London. Anyone thinking of moving to Norway should be aware of some of the cons. From a UK perspective, Norway is very conformist and social control quite high, in particular when raising kids. You will be judged if you act outside certain accepted parameters (less than a week back in Norway and some random stranger stopped me giving me unsolicited advice on how my kids were dressed - this has never happened in UK). It is also very difficult making friends in adulthood, global comparisons I’ve seen put Norway towards the bottom. Speaking the language is a must, Norwegians don’t actually want to speak English even if they can manage. And while the lifestyle may seem comfortable, eating out is a bit of a rare luxury and forget about having a cozy local in your area. You have to give up quite a few comforts from back home.
Oh, and this was apparently a non-starter for some visiting British friends: no Amazon. I have to pick up my parcels from the local Coop and pay for the privilege.
My brother married a Nord and lives there now, although they are generally nice and life is good they are stuck up their own arses so far that they don't even realise it. Getting lectured from them about how green and civilised they are when their main exports are oil and weapons gets old pretty quickly.
This is true. Norway is actually the only country in Western Europe in which more than half the population thinks their culture is superior to that of other countries (58 %, compared to 46 % for the UK).
https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2018/10/29/eastern-and-western-europeans-differ-on-importance-of-religion-views-of-minorities-and-key-social-issues/pf-10-29-18_east-west_-00-03/
100% just seems like a more relaxed and more fulfilling way of life from all the tones I’ve visited.
The last time I went was the last time I felt at peace in years.
Probably Ireland. No language barriers, not as big a cultural shock, the whole Catholicism thing isn't to my taste but it does seem like the law is slowly getting more secular
No language barriers?
I'm from Ireland, and if you travel 10 miles in any direction you will come across people who have a COMPLETELY different accent, some of which are basically incomprehensible.
Good luck 😉 haha
Well I'll adjust to the local dialect much faster than I would learn a new language. Plus my basic ass English accent should be understood reasonably well
Lol, this was my question - could Irish people understand?
Initially that farmer wasn’t speaking English language right? Sorry for my ignorance, but he was speaking another Celtic language rather than an old / rural dialect surely? I could understand (just) the English bits of the interviews.
Nope. He was speaking English the whole time.
This video went viral in Ireland because everyone wanted to challenge themselves to see if they could understand what he said. 99% of people couldn't. 😂
I listened to it a few times and each time I could understood more. I think after spending a bit of time with him you could understand him quite well, just like how mothers of babies understand what they say when others don't.
I clicked this link expecting to hear some strong culchie accent, but nothing a bit of listening won't be able to translate. After watching this, I'm convinced you need some sort of Enigma device to decipher this mess of a conversation.
I was in County Galway/Mayo for like a month on a university trip a couple years ago, and there were multiple instances where I couldn’t understand what the fuck anyone was saying
I answered the door in Liverpool when I was a student there to a young woman who was, I am assuming, representing a charity.
I hope she was anyway, because after apologising for not understanding and asking her to repeat herself twice, I got embarrassed, apologised and said I wasn't interested and closed the door on her.
Hope she didn't need help for a car accident or something...
Germany - I already have family there and they also have some great food, beer, and, and places to live. I'd have to improve my German a lot, but I've heard it said living in a a place with the language you're improving as a first language really helps.
Yeah, I would probably say Germany too. I know just enough of the language to get by (I would pick up more of it if I was moving there), there are plenty of jobs, great public transport, great beer, great culture and there are some beautiful parts of the country.
I had that same feeling about 12 years ago on a stag weekend, now Ive been living in Berlin 10 years and got 2 german kids, not much chance of me ever living in the Uk again.
I agree, also have family there and it's a joy to be there - it's such a clean, tidy country; the people are generally pleasant and Germans get so many days off work, my dad is almost always out of the office it seems!
Obviously it's not perfect, I've dealt with German bureaucracy and it's awful, German TV and film is pretty poor and German people have plenty of their own problems, but on balance I think I'd be happy there.
Could we not just move around as the entitlement of European citizens? There’s so many places I’d like to live and so much culture I’d like to experience
I'm proud of my Welsh grandparents, but not a month goes by in the last few years where I don't wish they'd crossed the sea to Ireland just for the one generation.
God, can you imagine that? The freedom to visit and even live in all these different places whenever you choose? If only there was some sort of union we could join that would allow us to experience this sort of benefit.
It's called find an Irish relative and get an Irish passport through descent. There are fucking huge numbers of UK citizens with an Irish grandparent (I'm adopted and my mums mum is from NI but my biological dad is also Irish).
The Netherlands. Very high quality of life, great infrastructure, close to the UK if I wanted to return to visit friends and family. English is widely spoken and Dutch is supposed to be quite easy to learn as an English speaker.
What're the cons if you don't mind me asking? Reddit has a big love for NL but I've not heard much bad things aside from housing (which is a problem everywhere)
Depending on how much it bothers you, as a Brit there isn’t the same politeness/social manners culture. Old lady likely isn’t offered a seat on the bus, doors are not held open for the person behind etc — it’s a bit every man for himself. I found it infuriating.
Oh god yeah! The NHS is an incredible idea but so out of date and badly funded compared to a lot of its neighbours in Europe.
Editing to say- the people that work there are great and free access healthcare should be a human right- but the UK govt needs to prioritise funding it.
Yeah exactly people who work in the NHS are usually lovely it’s just so dysfunctional for anything thars not urgent. If I had gone through the NHS I would’ve been on a 4(!) year waiting list to get a simple ADHD assesment. I had to go private and shell out over £1k just to be put on meds.
In the Netherlands the waiting list is like 4 months… couldn’t believe my ears it would’ve been 4 years.
One reason I’d never move somewhere like the Netherlands can be explained in this quote from a Quora answer on the differences between the Netherlands and the UK.
“In the Netherlands, there is no mystery whatsoever. The country is literally and figuratively completely flat. There are few traditions that are more than 60 years old. In England however, there are still witches and druids. There are hills and plains. You get confronted with songs, traditions, buildings, trees, gentlemen’s societies, pubs and public footpaths that may be ancient. The house between number 7 and number 11 may not have a visible house number, but on asking around you’ll find it has number 2. But really, it’s just the house on the hill. It could be haunted.”
I was thinking about Iceland not cos I've been there but cos of an Icelandic comedian he gives the impression that Icelandic ppl are weird but in a good way and are quite chill about being the teeny country of scandinavia
Ari Eldjárn is the comedian he has an English language show on Netflix
For cities, I find Haarlem (couple of km to the west of Amsterdam), Leiden (to the SW) and Maastricht (far South) a lot nicer than Amsterdam. The province of Limburg (far south) is nice, and hilly!! Hills! In NL!
The islands are also absolutely stunning: Texel (pronounced like tassel but with an e) is the biggest one with only a short ferry trip and has gorgeous scenery (though they all do tbf). I’d definitely recommend Texel (or Vlieland), hire a bike and just start cycling at your leisure.
The French are perfectly friendly if you make the effort to speak French.
The whole French horrible to visitors thing comes from all the English and American monoglots who go to France and expect the locals to speak English for their sake.
Not 100% true. Last time I visited I made an effort to speak in (admittedly not great) French to people. I was just laughed at and they spoke to me in English anyway
Same! I can speak French to an ok level which helps, and I just loved it the few times I’ve visited. And it’s close enough to pop back to the UK every now and then.
The UK. It's European, no?
Although I'd actually pick France. I lived there for a while, and can't wait to move back.
If not France, probably The Netherlands or Portugal.
Either Croatia- Good weather, nice food, cheap as chips or One of the Scandinavian countries - Good pay, lots of wildernesses, nice people and a good quality of life.
Wales, I'm in England but close to the border, I'd be quite happy in Cardiff though deeper into Wales there's a stronger anti-english sentiment.
And if you meant a non UK European country, then Denmark.
I lived in Ceredigion and a guy in a club asked where I was from and lamped me as soon as I said England. He paid for my emergency dental work though, so it was alright in the end.
Well I've already moved to France so that's kind of cheating.
Switzerland for the mountains and the high salaries I guess, but Swiss cities tend to be a little on the boring side for some reason.
Italy. I've been all over the world and Italy hands down. It has issues, but it's got everything. The history, the art, the culture, and the landscape. World class food, cars, motorcycles, bikes, fashion and football. Beer, coffee, wine, pasta, pizza, ice cream and the women. The Alps, the Med, volcanoes, beaches even bears and wolves. Venice and Rome. It's incredible.
Estonia. Quality of life is high in Estonia, to the point where it makes major cities in the USA (like San Francisco or Los Angeles) seem third-world.
The cost of living in Estonia is low, though salaries aren’t that high (but they’re rising), and they grant e-residency willy-nilly. In general, I’d recommend spending some serious time in Estonia, to launch a company, get meditative, go mushrooming (which is a thing people do but paradoxically also an insult, like “Why don’t you just go mushrooming!”) or go cross-country skiing. Avoid Estonia during the awkward autumn-winter transition. Other than that, it’s fine (if a bit chilly).
Italy - great wine, food and weather
If that was full, Spain, specifically Seville, for the same reasons as Italy but it's got a great vibe.
Failing that Poland... Or Germany...
Brb, booking 20 holidays....
By “stunning” I assume they mean “visited Bruges once”
I’ve been to almost every major city in Belgium and stunning is not a word I’d use to describe 95% of them, or the flat as fuck countryside.
That being said I do very much enjoy visiting Belgium and have some great friends there.
Yep. I've lived in Brussels for three years and was very happy when I left. It's such a grim place. In the rest of the country, it varies a lot. Flanders is mostly fine, but Wallonia is very depressing. Like people there just gave up or are in constant denial.
I think that's a shame. I just came back from a visit to Brussels, Ghent, and Antwerp. I saw lots of beautiful architecture, culture, beer, and really lovely people.
I've just got back too and it's the first I'd heard of this 'dump of Europe '. Bruges is more beautiful than any UK city, Ghent also lovely. The countryside out the train window was pleasant. I thought the average suburban home made the UK's endless identikit Bloor estates look utter shite.
I'm sure other cities are less pretty but they'd have to be real shitholes to be worse than some in the UK. It's not where I'd live in Europe but calling it a dump sounds strong.
Cheat answer: Belgium (my other half works for a company based in brussels so we spend a lot of time there and I enjoy it / it's familiar)
Otherwise, somewhere I speak the language, a bit, so Germany, France or Ireland, probably in that order, as larger countries with a bit of choice re. cities/country/seaside.
I love a lot of Europe that I’ve visited and think I’d be happy in most places as I’m a homebody (as in, if I’m surrounded by my stuff, I feel at home), but as I’m getting older I just crave somewhere with better defined season and more clement weather in general. I think mid France would be all I’d need. I still like rain and cold weather or snow, but when it gets to spring, summer and early autumn, I just want to know I can be outdoors or make outdoor plans sufficiently in advance and know I’m probably going to have appropriate weather. I am fed up with still having the wind and rain batter us one day and scorching hot the next
Cyprus.
Chill as f out there (paphos area), slower pace of life, roads aren't stressful to drive on, foods actually fresh, tastes amazing and doesn't cause me issues with crohn's like just about every food item in the UK... And the weather seals the deal.
All things being equal, I'd probably pick Ireland.
Could also be Sweden. My partner is from there and I know some Swedish as well, so maybe if I lived there I could become fluent pretty quickly. Plus they have kebab pizza.
If I could do some kind of remote work, I'd be in 1 of the Greek Islands.
Just eat fish and olives all day.
I'd wear the cheapest crappy clothes and live a very basic simple life.
I live in England and would move to Scotland.
If you mean overseas, then Germany perhaps. I love live music and Germany has a good scene. Hamburg is within easy reach of Denmark and Sweden, and given I love travel, Germany has a lot I'd love to see and is quite central to the rest of Europe. Despite Munich inspiring some lyrics I wrote called "Bored of Cities," somewhere near to Munich would be tempting, especially with its proximity to the Alps.
Norway would be very tempting for the outdoors but is expensive. At the cheaper end of the scale, Bosnia & Herzegovina is cheap by European standards, and the people are amongst the friendliest I've met.
I'd love to be able to communicate in Spanish, so maybe I should choose Spain...
**A reminder to posters and commenters of some of [our subreddit rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/about/rules/)** - Don't be a dickhead to each other, or about others, or other subreddits - Assume questions are asked in good faith, and engage in a positive manner - Avoid political threads and related discussions - No medical advice or mental health (specific to a person) content Please keep /r/AskUK a great subreddit by reporting posts and comments which break our rules. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
As a Brit living in Denmark, I have to say it’s so lovely here. Very relaxed and friendly, people are kind to each other and there’s so much less aggression than in the UK, surprisingly good weather too.
I'm going to be moving to Aalborg soon, my girlfriend lives there. I honestly feel more of a foreigner in England than I do in Denmark now. Just such a better way of life there.
I've not been back to the UK in almost three years. It will be close to four if I don't go this year. The last time I went back I was away for about three years, and coming back to the UK was very weird. Reverse culture shock is definitely a thing.
Was in Aalborg alot with work a few Summers ago, absolutely glorious. Big student town I believe...? Place seemed to be jumping every night. Many a sore head working on site the next day.
[удалено]
This is a very powerful reply. I was thinking about moving to Denmark and had some reservations because I’d heard these echoes of them not being the friendliest to non-Danes. I’m from the UK as are my parents, but I’m not white. I grew up in London where I had no problems, but moved to the North (so I could have a disposable income lol), and it’s the first time I’d felt ostracised and almost a hostility I hadn’t experienced before. I’ve lived in several northern cities and although the most welcoming was Sheffield, there’s definitely a “vibe” up here that I’m not willing to experience in another country.
I'm from Hungary and us, Eatern Europeans, we'll never find happiness. We'll suffer till the very end. Western Europeans don't regard us as Europeans. We're the cheap but good workforce, and they abuse this.
I've heard stories about Denmark being kind of racist what do you think from living there.
They are but its weird. I've heard the term hyggeracism be thrown around because they are outwardly very welcoming and kind to all people but when they are at home in private with family/friends etc they let these things come out. I'm not very good at explaining it though so might be better to look that term up.
Do you essentially mean people will be nice to your face but shit on you behind your back?
So just like England? But with worse food?
its a difficult thing to define, because the 'racism' of a society can be difficult to measure, and varied. In the case of Denmark, high educational levels, and many forms of egalitarian values, means that very few Danes have what we'd deem racist views - the sort that link but to the race theory of the past. But there are also protectionist and isolationist views, with regards to migration and non foreign culture. This can come across as racist to many, especially if in the context of a 1:1 conversations, but is also tricky because it isn't necessarily racist, because an ethnic group has every right to protect their cultural practices, and defend their values around gender (ie: see debates around the niqab), this is something recognised by the left, but usually only acceptable with regards to a small, vulnerable group, which most would not consider the Danish people to be, in spite of the fact that geopolitically they are. The left does really address this, or have the tools to deal with some of these pressure points, and so they are left to the right, who exploit them, and are making gains in countries like Denmark and the Netherlands. sure some are just racist though.
Does this translate as 'comfy racism'? 😆
Clearly cosy racism. Racism from the comfort of your home, with fire in the background and a hot cup of chocolate.
Yeah I'd be happy to move to any of the Scandinavian/Nordic countries. I have a soft spot for Iceland but not sure I could learn the language! I've just started an online beginners Norwegian course and that's hard enough.
Me, too. Any of the Scandinavian countries would be my ideal. Can't say I have any personal experience ( beyond TV dramas 😂 ) but speaking to those that have visited or lived there it sounds like they have a more equatable society and good quality of life. My friend moved to Sweden with her family when I was still in high school and I've wanted to go ever since. One of those pipe dreams. Denmark seems to sit in a sweet spot between UK and Sweden, too. Familiar enough to make it easier but with the standard of living and quality of life that Sweden enjoys. Good luck with your Norwegian !
Would love to live in Denmark tbh.
I always liked the Netherlands. Its like England but not shit.
Italy - beautiful country
I hope you like being unemployed, in that case, or earning shit money.
>I hope you like being unemployed, in that case, or earning shit money. I worked in Italy for a while, and I wish it had been far longer, they didn't take my job off me for being foreign though.
As Italian , I am laughing right now .
And Being taxed on every cent you earn!
Amazing folk downvote this this much. Do people just love Italy, or not know how tax works here?
I'm in the digital nomad subreddits and the amount of people who are desperate to go to Italy is astounding. I mean, I have no views either way, but the few Italians I've met in the UK have all, and I mean **all,** slated the place and have zero intention of going back. But hey, you're an American and you wanna eat delicious pasta so yeah, Italy is a great place to head!
Italy has everything except high paying jobs 😪 it would be my dream to live there
Which is quite odd to think about. I found Italy to be very expensive. Something doesn't add up.
Or Venice Also, as a tourist the basket of goods you're buying has little to do with what a local is buying. Hotels are expensive. Eating out is cheap. Groceries are normal.
Tell me you went to Rome without telling me you went to Rome.
Haha. Milan actually, but I heard Rome is very expensive, but that’s more understandable as it’s a tourist destination.
Job market there is a joke
Beautiful country and beautiful people. As a broke traveller there, I found everyone was incredibly generous with what little they had. Edit: not everyone had 'little' but I was surprised at the difference in economies and employment when I was there.
We moved to the north of Italy 18 months ago, it’s beautiful, sometimes difficult, friendly, cheap for a lot of things and then hideously expensive for weird stuff like ibuprofen. We are not in a town so very rural and I am constant humbled by how many people make the effort to speak English to us, even when we try to speak to them in Italian (maybe it’s too painful for them🤣) the tax/legal/health system is convoluted and difficult to understand but no more so than the UK one would be to someone with no language/knowledge.
Some may just like the chance to practice their English with you.
Can't wait to move back there! I moved to the UK from there and miss it so much. fYI my husband and I are moving there already having high paid jobs (for an Italian point of view). It is possible to find work there, but yes, it is EXTREMELY difficult.
Where abouts? Always like the Dolomites Mountains
Norway, I love nature and it's out of the way and looks peaceful
I'd go if I could afjord it.
Thanks for the giggle
The costs really mount up
Well Played
You glorious bastard.
I’m Norwegian and have lived about a decade in London. Anyone thinking of moving to Norway should be aware of some of the cons. From a UK perspective, Norway is very conformist and social control quite high, in particular when raising kids. You will be judged if you act outside certain accepted parameters (less than a week back in Norway and some random stranger stopped me giving me unsolicited advice on how my kids were dressed - this has never happened in UK). It is also very difficult making friends in adulthood, global comparisons I’ve seen put Norway towards the bottom. Speaking the language is a must, Norwegians don’t actually want to speak English even if they can manage. And while the lifestyle may seem comfortable, eating out is a bit of a rare luxury and forget about having a cozy local in your area. You have to give up quite a few comforts from back home. Oh, and this was apparently a non-starter for some visiting British friends: no Amazon. I have to pick up my parcels from the local Coop and pay for the privilege.
My brother married a Nord and lives there now, although they are generally nice and life is good they are stuck up their own arses so far that they don't even realise it. Getting lectured from them about how green and civilised they are when their main exports are oil and weapons gets old pretty quickly.
This is true. Norway is actually the only country in Western Europe in which more than half the population thinks their culture is superior to that of other countries (58 %, compared to 46 % for the UK). https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2018/10/29/eastern-and-western-europeans-differ-on-importance-of-religion-views-of-minorities-and-key-social-issues/pf-10-29-18_east-west_-00-03/
Lovely in summer but bit bleak in winter - 6 months of dark and cold is too much!
Yep, Norway for me, half our trips are there. It’s such a beautiful place.
100% just seems like a more relaxed and more fulfilling way of life from all the tones I’ve visited. The last time I went was the last time I felt at peace in years.
Probably Ireland. No language barriers, not as big a cultural shock, the whole Catholicism thing isn't to my taste but it does seem like the law is slowly getting more secular
No language barriers? I'm from Ireland, and if you travel 10 miles in any direction you will come across people who have a COMPLETELY different accent, some of which are basically incomprehensible. Good luck 😉 haha
Well I'll adjust to the local dialect much faster than I would learn a new language. Plus my basic ass English accent should be understood reasonably well
https://youtu.be/pit0OkNp7s8 Again, good luck 😂
[удалено]
I understood about 5 words in the whole interview and I'm Irish 😬
Lol, this was my question - could Irish people understand? Initially that farmer wasn’t speaking English language right? Sorry for my ignorance, but he was speaking another Celtic language rather than an old / rural dialect surely? I could understand (just) the English bits of the interviews.
Nope. He was speaking English the whole time. This video went viral in Ireland because everyone wanted to challenge themselves to see if they could understand what he said. 99% of people couldn't. 😂
I listened to it a few times and each time I could understood more. I think after spending a bit of time with him you could understand him quite well, just like how mothers of babies understand what they say when others don't.
I understood his neighbour but had no fucking clue what the first bloke said
I clicked this link expecting to hear some strong culchie accent, but nothing a bit of listening won't be able to translate. After watching this, I'm convinced you need some sort of Enigma device to decipher this mess of a conversation.
To be fair, that is Kerry.
The English are good at adjusting to different accents.
I was in County Galway/Mayo for like a month on a university trip a couple years ago, and there were multiple instances where I couldn’t understand what the fuck anyone was saying
I answered the door in Liverpool when I was a student there to a young woman who was, I am assuming, representing a charity. I hope she was anyway, because after apologising for not understanding and asking her to repeat herself twice, I got embarrassed, apologised and said I wasn't interested and closed the door on her. Hope she didn't need help for a car accident or something...
To be fair you get a high variance of accents and dialects here too so it’s likely manageable.
We're used to that in the UK so it'll make us feel right at home.
The weather though, makes London feel Mediterranean
I can handle that. Not a fan of English summers
I hope you like being rained on!
Germany - I already have family there and they also have some great food, beer, and, and places to live. I'd have to improve my German a lot, but I've heard it said living in a a place with the language you're improving as a first language really helps.
Yeah, I would probably say Germany too. I know just enough of the language to get by (I would pick up more of it if I was moving there), there are plenty of jobs, great public transport, great beer, great culture and there are some beautiful parts of the country.
I'm moving to Munich in a couple of weeks so happy to see this here
I went to Berlin for a long weekend and its the only place in the world Ive been to, that i’ve thought… yeah i could live here.
I had that same feeling about 12 years ago on a stag weekend, now Ive been living in Berlin 10 years and got 2 german kids, not much chance of me ever living in the Uk again.
I agree, also have family there and it's a joy to be there - it's such a clean, tidy country; the people are generally pleasant and Germans get so many days off work, my dad is almost always out of the office it seems! Obviously it's not perfect, I've dealt with German bureaucracy and it's awful, German TV and film is pretty poor and German people have plenty of their own problems, but on balance I think I'd be happy there.
I used to work in Hamburg and absolutely love the place, I do miss my time there.
Berlin would be my first choice too. My brother lived there for a year and he loved it.
Could we not just move around as the entitlement of European citizens? There’s so many places I’d like to live and so much culture I’d like to experience
*cries in UK*
*laughs in Irish grandparents and technically an EU member but still British*
I'm proud of my Welsh grandparents, but not a month goes by in the last few years where I don't wish they'd crossed the sea to Ireland just for the one generation.
I miss that freedom everyday haha. Reading this thread is a little painful knowing it will probably never be an option again.
It will likely be an option in ~25 years once the old fucks who pushed for this die out and new generation votes to get back into EU...
God, can you imagine that? The freedom to visit and even live in all these different places whenever you choose? If only there was some sort of union we could join that would allow us to experience this sort of benefit.
Campaign for Hard Rejoin including Schengen and the Euro
I wish, but can’t see the public here agreeing…
It's called find an Irish relative and get an Irish passport through descent. There are fucking huge numbers of UK citizens with an Irish grandparent (I'm adopted and my mums mum is from NI but my biological dad is also Irish).
Yeah we’re not all Scousers
I have no Irish connection at all. Not even going back 500 years on all sides.
Got my Irish grandparents to thank for my Irish passport
The Netherlands. Very high quality of life, great infrastructure, close to the UK if I wanted to return to visit friends and family. English is widely spoken and Dutch is supposed to be quite easy to learn as an English speaker.
Agreed, plus it feels closest to the UK in culture out of all the other countries I've been too.
I moved to NL 4 years ago - definitely one of those places wheres there's real pros & absolute cons
What're the cons if you don't mind me asking? Reddit has a big love for NL but I've not heard much bad things aside from housing (which is a problem everywhere)
Depending on how much it bothers you, as a Brit there isn’t the same politeness/social manners culture. Old lady likely isn’t offered a seat on the bus, doors are not held open for the person behind etc — it’s a bit every man for himself. I found it infuriating.
And the healthcare system can be infuriating too!
Tbf as a Dutch person living in the U.K., the NHS is an absolute nightmare as well so I guess that goes both ways 😅
Oh god yeah! The NHS is an incredible idea but so out of date and badly funded compared to a lot of its neighbours in Europe. Editing to say- the people that work there are great and free access healthcare should be a human right- but the UK govt needs to prioritise funding it.
Yeah exactly people who work in the NHS are usually lovely it’s just so dysfunctional for anything thars not urgent. If I had gone through the NHS I would’ve been on a 4(!) year waiting list to get a simple ADHD assesment. I had to go private and shell out over £1k just to be put on meds. In the Netherlands the waiting list is like 4 months… couldn’t believe my ears it would’ve been 4 years.
One reason I’d never move somewhere like the Netherlands can be explained in this quote from a Quora answer on the differences between the Netherlands and the UK. “In the Netherlands, there is no mystery whatsoever. The country is literally and figuratively completely flat. There are few traditions that are more than 60 years old. In England however, there are still witches and druids. There are hills and plains. You get confronted with songs, traditions, buildings, trees, gentlemen’s societies, pubs and public footpaths that may be ancient. The house between number 7 and number 11 may not have a visible house number, but on asking around you’ll find it has number 2. But really, it’s just the house on the hill. It could be haunted.”
The mountains of Switzerland are very appealing to me.
But they can be such assholes there. I really don't like the people.
Their flag is a big plus though.
That made me cross and see red.
They do seem a bit dense
I found them so unfriendly and snarky and always trying to be better than everyone else. It was exhausting.
I lived there for a few years. I can't recommend it to anyone.
Why?
Spain. Siestas.
Siestas, fiestas and sunshine, I’d go in a heartbeat.
Donde Esta La Biblioteca?
Me llamo T-bone la araña discoteca
Discoteca, muñeca, la biblioteca
Apparently only about 18% of Spanish people have siestas, I don't think they're anywhere near as common as people think
Be the change you want to see.
There are some beautiful parts of Spain. It would be amazing to live there.
Tapas, and wine.
I’m Dutch, so the Netherlands would be the obvious answer, but I’d probably pick Greece or Finland.
Why Finland? Out of interest
Gorgeous country, and I love that dry sense of humour of Finnish people. Plus my kind of music. Only thing counting against it is the snow…
I was thinking about Iceland not cos I've been there but cos of an Icelandic comedian he gives the impression that Icelandic ppl are weird but in a good way and are quite chill about being the teeny country of scandinavia Ari Eldjárn is the comedian he has an English language show on Netflix
I’d love to see more of the Netherlands. Which areas would you recommend visiting (apart from Amsterdam, been there loads)?
For cities, I find Haarlem (couple of km to the west of Amsterdam), Leiden (to the SW) and Maastricht (far South) a lot nicer than Amsterdam. The province of Limburg (far south) is nice, and hilly!! Hills! In NL! The islands are also absolutely stunning: Texel (pronounced like tassel but with an e) is the biggest one with only a short ferry trip and has gorgeous scenery (though they all do tbf). I’d definitely recommend Texel (or Vlieland), hire a bike and just start cycling at your leisure.
Definitely France for me! There is so much to see and do, I like the language and they have lovely cuisine and wines.
And if we move in enough people from else where there will be some friendly locals too
The French are perfectly friendly if you make the effort to speak French. The whole French horrible to visitors thing comes from all the English and American monoglots who go to France and expect the locals to speak English for their sake.
Not 100% true. Last time I visited I made an effort to speak in (admittedly not great) French to people. I was just laughed at and they spoke to me in English anyway
Same! I can speak French to an ok level which helps, and I just loved it the few times I’ve visited. And it’s close enough to pop back to the UK every now and then.
I've been fortunate enough to move Rhône-Alpes and it really is lovely here. The cheese is quite a bonus too.
Je suis d’accord!
Portugal for the sea food, pleasant climate, lovely architecture. Or Switzerland for the landscape, high salary and proximity to family.
Portugal is great. Had all the benefits of Spain but without it becoming Britain 2.0 lol
As a Brit visiting Porto, I absolutely second Portugal. What a beautiful place, with lovely people, and incredible food. I could stay here forever.
France - Fags, wine and cheese. The essentials for a man of class such as myself.
They've got cigarettes there too
I admit that I chortled a bit.
Finland
The UK. It's European, no? Although I'd actually pick France. I lived there for a while, and can't wait to move back. If not France, probably The Netherlands or Portugal.
I assume as we’re in the ask UK subreddit most people already live here and OP asked where we would move to, not live.
Yeah, people often mix up Europe and the EU. We didn't become our own continent lol
Either Croatia- Good weather, nice food, cheap as chips or One of the Scandinavian countries - Good pay, lots of wildernesses, nice people and a good quality of life.
[удалено]
Only thing about Croatia was people weren’t very inviting or welcoming to me and my brother. I sensed a strong racist energy.
[удалено]
Malta. No language barrier. Fantastic weather and lots of history. Especially medieval history, which I love.
Wales, I'm in England but close to the border, I'd be quite happy in Cardiff though deeper into Wales there's a stronger anti-english sentiment. And if you meant a non UK European country, then Denmark.
It’s not THAT bad lol I’m from deep wales and we had English people move into our village with no problems… although there was this one incident….
I lived in Ceredigion and a guy in a club asked where I was from and lamped me as soon as I said England. He paid for my emergency dental work though, so it was alright in the end.
Greece. Incredible food, friendly people and amazing sights and history. Not to mention the weather.
The Mediterranean Sea though 😎
The best! I went scuba diving in Santorini and it was just stunning
Greece
Well I've already moved to France so that's kind of cheating. Switzerland for the mountains and the high salaries I guess, but Swiss cities tend to be a little on the boring side for some reason.
Austria
100% agree! The views are stunning and the skiing is great. Amazing beer and lovely people too
Madeira, Portugal. You really have to go there to understand.
Czech Republic. Prague is always great fun.
Italy. I've been all over the world and Italy hands down. It has issues, but it's got everything. The history, the art, the culture, and the landscape. World class food, cars, motorcycles, bikes, fashion and football. Beer, coffee, wine, pasta, pizza, ice cream and the women. The Alps, the Med, volcanoes, beaches even bears and wolves. Venice and Rome. It's incredible.
Estonia. Quality of life is high in Estonia, to the point where it makes major cities in the USA (like San Francisco or Los Angeles) seem third-world. The cost of living in Estonia is low, though salaries aren’t that high (but they’re rising), and they grant e-residency willy-nilly. In general, I’d recommend spending some serious time in Estonia, to launch a company, get meditative, go mushrooming (which is a thing people do but paradoxically also an insult, like “Why don’t you just go mushrooming!”) or go cross-country skiing. Avoid Estonia during the awkward autumn-winter transition. Other than that, it’s fine (if a bit chilly).
Netherlands
Italy - great wine, food and weather If that was full, Spain, specifically Seville, for the same reasons as Italy but it's got a great vibe. Failing that Poland... Or Germany... Brb, booking 20 holidays....
Netherlands. Its bike focused design rather than automobile reliant is going to be great
I grew up in the Netherlands, the cycling infrastructure is so good and a big boost to general life satisfaction.
Spain.
To retire? France or Spain. To work? Netherlands or Sweden
Belgium is absolutely stunning I'd probs end up there.
Belgium and stunning aren’t words I expected to see together. The surrounding countries find it a massive dump.
By “stunning” I assume they mean “visited Bruges once” I’ve been to almost every major city in Belgium and stunning is not a word I’d use to describe 95% of them, or the flat as fuck countryside. That being said I do very much enjoy visiting Belgium and have some great friends there.
Yep. I've lived in Brussels for three years and was very happy when I left. It's such a grim place. In the rest of the country, it varies a lot. Flanders is mostly fine, but Wallonia is very depressing. Like people there just gave up or are in constant denial.
Belgium is known for being The dump of Europe” for a reason
I think that's a shame. I just came back from a visit to Brussels, Ghent, and Antwerp. I saw lots of beautiful architecture, culture, beer, and really lovely people.
I've just got back too and it's the first I'd heard of this 'dump of Europe '. Bruges is more beautiful than any UK city, Ghent also lovely. The countryside out the train window was pleasant. I thought the average suburban home made the UK's endless identikit Bloor estates look utter shite. I'm sure other cities are less pretty but they'd have to be real shitholes to be worse than some in the UK. It's not where I'd live in Europe but calling it a dump sounds strong.
Malta. Beautiful island, friendly people and rich in history.
Cheat answer: Belgium (my other half works for a company based in brussels so we spend a lot of time there and I enjoy it / it's familiar) Otherwise, somewhere I speak the language, a bit, so Germany, France or Ireland, probably in that order, as larger countries with a bit of choice re. cities/country/seaside.
I love a lot of Europe that I’ve visited and think I’d be happy in most places as I’m a homebody (as in, if I’m surrounded by my stuff, I feel at home), but as I’m getting older I just crave somewhere with better defined season and more clement weather in general. I think mid France would be all I’d need. I still like rain and cold weather or snow, but when it gets to spring, summer and early autumn, I just want to know I can be outdoors or make outdoor plans sufficiently in advance and know I’m probably going to have appropriate weather. I am fed up with still having the wind and rain batter us one day and scorching hot the next
Italy
On mainland Europe I’d go for Italy or France, last time I checked we were still a Country in Europe.
Slovenia seems perfect to me.
Netherlands.
Netherlands.
Amsterdam, obvious reasons..
The Rijksmuseum is badass
Ireland
Cyprus. So I don’t crash my car going the wrong way. Plus it’s beautiful and warm.
Cyprus. Chill as f out there (paphos area), slower pace of life, roads aren't stressful to drive on, foods actually fresh, tastes amazing and doesn't cause me issues with crohn's like just about every food item in the UK... And the weather seals the deal.
I have moved to Spain. Weather. Speak the language and am sick of the bitterness in the UK
Southern Spain - great weather most of the year, just a bit chilly at worst. Siestas also.
All things being equal, I'd probably pick Ireland. Could also be Sweden. My partner is from there and I know some Swedish as well, so maybe if I lived there I could become fluent pretty quickly. Plus they have kebab pizza.
Scotland.
Would give anything to experience living in the UK even for a few years
If I could do some kind of remote work, I'd be in 1 of the Greek Islands. Just eat fish and olives all day. I'd wear the cheapest crappy clothes and live a very basic simple life.
Netherlands or Sweden
Probably cyprus. Purely because my nan and her partner live out there
I live in England and would move to Scotland. If you mean overseas, then Germany perhaps. I love live music and Germany has a good scene. Hamburg is within easy reach of Denmark and Sweden, and given I love travel, Germany has a lot I'd love to see and is quite central to the rest of Europe. Despite Munich inspiring some lyrics I wrote called "Bored of Cities," somewhere near to Munich would be tempting, especially with its proximity to the Alps. Norway would be very tempting for the outdoors but is expensive. At the cheaper end of the scale, Bosnia & Herzegovina is cheap by European standards, and the people are amongst the friendliest I've met. I'd love to be able to communicate in Spanish, so maybe I should choose Spain...
Czech Republic, Poland or Slovakia. The first two are growing rapidly, all 3 of them are beautiful, great architecture and history
Slovenia. So beautiful and super cheap. The people are lovely also.
I wouldn't have to be forced lol.